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How to Survive a Tropical Storm in Hawaii

Funjet Insider August 29, 2014

It would have been the first hurricane to make landfall on Hawaii in decades if Iselle had remained a hurricane. By the time it hit the Big Island, though, it was merely a tropical storm, and I was five islands away, on Kauai.

Lucky me!

Sadly, our planned snorkeling excursion was cancelled due to the storm. We tried setting up a horseback riding tour and the tour that takes you around to different places on the island where movies were filmed, but those were cancelled, too. What a bummer.

So what did we do? We hopped in the car and drove around the whole island to explore!

Even with low clouds and rain, Kauai is incredibly beautiful

A lot of the shops and restaurants were closed because of the incoming storm, so my dad and I spent the day driving wherever our hearts – and the winding mountain roads – took us. We came across amazingly beautiful overlooks and felt like we were discovering the secrets of the island since people weren’t really out and about. We practically had the whole place to ourselves!

Taking selfies at 5,148 feet at the Pu'u O Kila Lookout Taking selfies at 5,148 feet at the Pu'u O Kila Lookout

Of course, there are parts of Kauai that you can’t reach by car – for example, the Na Pali Coast. We had seen that part of the island earlier in the week (when the sun was still shining!) and there aren’t really words to describe it. I’ll try in a future blog post though! It seems like such an unbelievable landscape deserves its own post with photos.

That being said, there’s cool stuff reachable by car, too! We went to the Waimea Canyon and Pu’u O Kila lookout. Even though we couldn’t see much because of the fog/clouds/rain, it was still breathtaking. I can’t imagine how beautiful it would be on a clear day! We drove past a NASA/Navy Missile Launch Station. Wild.

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And speaking of “wild” – we saw some “wildlife” in the form of a donkey hanging out by the side of the road. He didn’t seem concerned about the “hurricane.”

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So, now that I’ve survived a “hurricane”, here are my tips on How to Survive a Tropical Storm in Hawaii:

  • Don’t freak out! Even though the residents have cleared out all the bottled water, batteries and canned food from nearby grocery stores, you’re going to be fine. (The hotel has you covered on all that stuff, anyhow!)

  • Don’t hide. Go out and explore! Who cares if it’s raining? You might stumble across something really amazing that you never would have found if the rain hadn’t chased you off the beach. (But please be smart – if it’s really dangerous weather, don’t take this piece of advice, obvs!)

  • Communicate with your family back home. They’ll be worried, even if it turns out it wasn’t a big deal. I was glad my dad was with me on this trip.

  • Take selfies. What a story you’ll have when you get home!
    • Even in a rain storm, you can get out and explore – here, I’m looking toward the Na Pali Coast Even in a rain storm, you can get out and explore – here, I’m looking toward the Na Pali Coast

    In the end, the “hurricane” seemed like no big deal (to us, at least). We had some rain and cloudy days, which was not the best when you’re hoping for a sunshiny island paradise. When I think back on the trip, though, exploring with my dad was one of my favorite things that we did together! Plus, it made us feel like we got to know the island better – not just see it as a vacation destination, but as somewhere people live and deal with the occasional crazy storm.

    Have you ever been to Kauai or been caught in a storm while traveling? Tell me about it in the comments!

    -Jessi, The Ultimate Funjetter

    Keep an eye out for more stories from Hawaii along with Las Vegas, which was my first trip as the Ultimate Funjetter!

    Funjet Insider August 29, 2014